Raikkonen getting to know his car

The new Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Media unit made its debut in the
Barcelona paddock and the honour of staging the first press conference
inside it went to Kimi Raikkonen, who began by talking about last week's
test at this Circuit de ...

The new Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Media unit made its debut in the
Barcelona paddock and the honour of staging the first press conference
inside it went to Kimi Raikkonen, who began by talking about last week's
test at this Circuit de Catalunya.

"We had a good test here and found
several things that seem to make the car more suited to me, but of
course you never know until you have experienced it in a race weekend,
even if I am pretty sure it really is better," he began."

"The new parts, particularly aerodynamic ones have made the difference and the car now
does what I want it to do. We got a better understanding of what to do
in terms of tyres for the one lap qualifying situation, whereas in the
races tyres had not been a problem so far."

Always looking for an angle
that might not exist, the Finn was asked about his relationship with
Felipe Massa. "It is as good as it has always been since I came here,"
he said. "He is my team-mate but also a competitor as is always the case
in Formula 1."

It is fair to say that this year the two championships are looking
closer than in past years and Raikkonen does not expect this situation
to end soon. "With all of us so close, it could go on like this for most
of the season with someone only getting the advantage if the others drop
back. Hopefully, that won't be us."

One of the main talking points in the paddock is that this weekend, the
retired seven times world champion, Michael Schumacher will be making
his first appearance at a grand prix this year, although he has been to
a test session. Would the presence of the man he replaced be a help or
a hindrance?

"Michael is still very much part of the team," maintained
Raikkonen. "He is involved with what we do and so it is natural for him
to be here. I am sure he will be useful for us this weekend. Certainly
he will be able to give us some good advice, but at the end of the day,
I am the one who drives the car!"